What Happened To T.J. Miller: The Downfall Of A Deadpool Star
Warning: This story includes graphic content.
Just a few years ago, T.J. Miller was one of the most booked and busy actors in Hollywood, as the comedian appeared in the "Deadpool," "Transformers," and "How To Train Your Dragon" franchises, and also starred as Elrich Bachman on the HBO comedy "Silicon Valley." However, despite major momentum in his professional life, Miller had several newsworthy incidents ranging from calling in a bomb threat to being accused of sexual harassment and misconduct. These accusations significantly derailed his once-unstoppable career.
Miller's early career as a stand-up comedian saw him making appearances on the "Chelsea Lately" talk show where he was a roundtable participant. In 2008, he landed a starring role in the monster film "Cloverfield," following those up with parts in the comedies "She's Out of My League," "Get Him To The Greek," and his own television series, "The Gorburger Show." Over the next decade, Miller nabbed some major roles, including Wade Wilson's close friend Weasel in "Deadpool" and "Deadpool 2," voice parts in "The Emoji Movie," "How to Train Your Dragon," and "Big Hero 6," and a stand-up standup special on HBO. Miller also appeared in the Steven Spielberg-directed "Ready Player One" as i-R0k.
Today, Miller isn't nearly the star he once was. But where is he now and what happened to his once-promising career?
Miller's arrest in 2016 started a downward spiral
In 2016, T.J. Miller's increasingly erratic behavior led to him getting in trouble with the law. The actor was arrested after allegedly assaulting an Uber driver by slapping him on the head following an argument over then-President-elect Donald Trump. The driver claimed Miller was trying to get high on Whip-Its during the encounter. Miller reached a settlement with the man in 2018. Within the same year, Miller and his wife Kate Gorney were kicked out of a casino in Monte Cristo, with the actor sharing that staff felt he was being too aggressive.
In 2017, Miller and HBO announced he was leaving "Silicon Valley," with later reports from the The Hollywood Reporter linking the actor's alcohol and substance abuse issues. In discussing Miller's departure, the show's co-creator Mike Judge said, "It was kind of becoming clear that he didn't want to do the show anymore, but we wanted to leave it so that there would be an opportunity to come back at some point." For his part, Miller said in a different interview with the Hollywood Reporter that HBO wanted him back for a few episodes of "Silicon Valley" Season 5, but he opted to just leave the show and pursue other endeavors.
Miller was among those called out during the MeToo movement
In 2017, amid the #MeToo movement, where people publicly spoke about their experiences with sexual abusers in Hollywood and the film industry, T.J. Miller was among those accused of sexual assault.
The Daily Beast reported on an incident in 2001 at George Washington University, where a woman, using the alias Sarah, alleged Miller punched her in the mouth during sex and was abusive in different encounters, including one where he purportedly penetrated her with a beer bottle without her consent. "'I was not ready to process what was happening [the prior year], and I have spent a lot of time in my life apologizing for not having shouted 'no,' and for not having told my roommates to get him out of here,' Sarah said. 'I was not ready to reconcile the events taking place with the person I had known. It was so disorienting and so physically traumatic.' She added that Miller apparently did not receive any disciplinary action before he graduated in 2003.
In response to the allegations, Miller said the woman "began again to circulate rumors online once [his wife Kate's] relationship became public. Sadly she is now using the current climate to bandwagon and launch these false accusations again." In the statement, he added, "It is unfortunate that she is choosing this route as it undermines the important movement to make women feel safe coming forward about legitimate claims against real known predators." In 2019, he called the accuser a stalker who wanted to steal his wife's life.
Following the accusations, Miller was dropped from "How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World," where he voiced Tuffnut. Although, director Dean DeBlois said he did not make the decision to recast Miller.
Miller called in a bomb threat
In April 2018, T.J. Miller's most bizarre public outburst occurred after he called in a bomb threat while on an Amtrak train. According to police reports, Miller dialed 911 as he was traveling from Washington to New York City, telling responders a woman had a bomb in her bag — which turned out not to be true. Officers suspected Miller of being drunk and argumentative, with the actor's call leading to the evacuation of an entirely different train he wasn't even on.
Miller's Silicon Valley co-star Alice Wetterlund, who appeared as Cara Walton on the show, condemned Miller's rehabilitation in the public eye. She sarcastically wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, "Yes! It is definitely time to rehabilitate TJ Miller's career! We can't afford to lose talent at a time like this, we need more—not less—comedic hijinks such as *checks notes* calling in a fake bomb threat." Additionally, Wetterlund called out Miller's "petulant brat behavior" while saying her fellow cast members enabled his bullying. Miller denied being a bully and alleged she was the one who was difficult to work with.
In 2021, the charges against Miller were dropped, as the neurological impact of prior brain surgery where a piece of his frontal lobe was removed led to doubt about his actual intent. As part of the case being dismissed, Miller agreed to make full restitution payments for the cost of the fake 911 call.
Beefing with Ryan Reynolds
T.J. Miller isn't returning as Weasel in "Deadpool & Wolverine," and it's really no surprise given his biting comments against co-star Ryan Reynolds.
In an interview on the "Adam Carolla Show," Miller said he wouldn't work with Reynolds again given the chance. He alleged his "Deadpool" co-star was rather insecure and acted mean on set while in character. Miller also accused Reynolds of telling him he wasn't the star of the movie. On the "Help! with Natalie Cuomo" podcast, he further alleged that Reynolds changed after he got more famous in between each "Deadpool" film, adding things got really weird between them.
The comments blew up online, with Miller apologizing on "Jim Norton & Sam Roberts," sharing he wasn't thinking about what he was saying, and that his beef with his co-star was a misunderstanding. According to Miller, he cleared the air with Reynolds over any on-set conflicts, as the "Deadpool" actor reportedly emailed him to do so. "It was very cool for him to say, 'Hey, you know, I just heard on the show that you were upset about this.' And I kind of said, 'You know, I'm not,' and then we sort of just hashed it out really quickly," Miller clarified.
What is T.J. Miller doing now?
T.J. Miller's last official acting credit came in a voice role for "F Is For Family" in 2021, where he voiced Randy. In 2023, Deadline reported he was voicing a character in the Web3 animated comedy inspired by Sam Bankman-Fried's FTX Crypto collapse — but the series hasn't been released, nor have there been any major updates at the time of writing. Besides that, he's toured across the country, releasing several stand-up bits and specials on his YouTube Channel. Miller remains active on X, where he continually plugs cryptocurrency, including his pro-NFT comedy specials.
It's hard to argue that Miller's downfall isn't mostly self-inflicted. His unpredictable career trajectory saw him reach considerable highs with major movie roles in big franchises, but due to his own actions and several allegations regarding his behavior, it's unlikely he'll ever reach those same heights again.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).